Dr. Tim Uhl has a tradition when he drives to and from work – he listens to podcasts.
One day, when the Montana Catholic Schools Superintendent listened to one of his former high school student’s podcast, he had a realization.
“Why not me?” he asked himself. “I knew a few people and also knew that no one seemed to be doing this. So I thought this would be a great way to spotlight innovation and best practices and have conversations with smart people about the best path forward. This sounds like jargon but it’s really true. I like thinking, I like talking to smart people, and I like trying new things.”
And so, this past September Dr. Uhl released his own podcast, Catholic Education Matters. Each week, he interviews thought leaders in Catholic education and discusses the future of Catholic schools in America.
Dr. Uhl hopes to reach emerging leaders, including those who want to be Catholic school principals, current principals who want to improve, aspiring superintendents, or current superintendents searching for better ways.
He says he wanted to focus on Catholic education for a variety of reasons.
“In places like Montana, school leaders tend to feel isolated,” he explains. “But even in our larger dioceses, schools tend to be consumed by their daily issues and have trouble looking beyond and thinking strategically. Even academics tend to get ‘siloed’ and don’t really think outside of the box.”
He says he hopes this podcast will ignite that conversation about why Catholic education matters.
While Dr. Uhl just released his 10th episode, he already has some show highlights.
“I like episode #1 with Dr. Tom Burnford because he lays out a great vision for NCEA [National Catholic Education Association],” he says.
In the interview, Dr. Burnford talks about where the NCEA is at right now as well as where leaders need to go to move forward. He also outlines the one thing he could change about Catholic schools, and where he thinks Catholic schools will be 50 years from now.
Dr. Uhl asks his guests thought-provoking questions and has a conversational tone that makes his listeners feel as though they’re a part of the conversation.
“Episode #3 with Dr. Kevin Baxter is also fantastic,” he says. “But my interview with Stephanie Saroki de Garcia Episode #7 was the most fun and gave me the confidence that I could do this.”
To listen to Dr Uhl’s podcast, Catholic Education Matters, you can find it on iTunes or visit catholicschoolmatters.libsyn.com/podcast.
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